A lot of people look for a miracle drug to promote weight loss and improve energy. In the 1990s, the ephedra plant became popular as a likely candidate, and not till after the mid-2000s, it was a normal ingredient used in dietary supplements. Although some research has shown that it could improve metabolism and loss of weight, some safety issues were also noted.

The three species of these stubborn plants that are the source of the drug are native to China, where the aerial parts are collected in the fall and dried for medicinal purposes. The scientific name of the plant is Ephedra sinica, E. Equisetina, E. intermedia.The roots of E. Sinica or E. intermedia, known as ma huang gen, are considered drugs in their own right and are used for their sleep-inducing properties. Ma Huang is also referred to as yellow horse, ephedra, and yellow astringent.

What is Ma Huang?

Ephedra also called Ma Huang is a condiment used in the preparation of various Traditional Chinese Medicines (TCM) for several centuries. It is mainly used to treat bronchitis, hay fever, and asthma. The plant is also recommended for symptoms of flu and cold, as well as cough, chills, nasal congestion, and fever.

Although Ephedra is a freely growing herb, the primary active ingredient of the plant, ephedrine, can be synthesized as medicine. Man-made ephedrine compounds, for example, pseudoephedrine, are usually used in over-the-counter cold treatments and are regulated as medicines. This is different from the regularization of ephedrine alkaloids obtained from the herb itself. These are governed as dietary supplements.

Before May 2004, ephedra was marketed as an energy-boosting supplement, a weight-loss product, and an athletic performance booster. Although there is some scientific evidence suggesting that it can improve one’s weight, the overall data on the effectiveness of this herbal supplement has been regarded as controversial and inconclusive. Furthermore, products that contain ephedra and are sold for the causes have been related to a lot of cases of heart arrhythmia ( heart attack/ irregular heartbeats), cases of stroke, and cases of death even. Many of the ephedra-containing products contain caffeine as well, and the mixture of both caffeine and ephedra improves the risk of getting negative side effects.

It is crucial to take note that due to the presence of ephedrine in some products, such as dietary supplements, amateur sporting events are not allowed to use them.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has banned the use of dietary supplements that contain ephedrine, ma huang, Pinella, Ephedra, or Sida cordifolia. This ban does not include teas ( which are distributed as a normal food) or Chinese traditional herbal remedies that have been recommended by a traditional Chinese doctor.

Improving Metabolic Rates and Fat Burn

Quite a number of the research into the effects of ephedra on weight loss was done in the 1980s and early 2000s, before the ban on ephedrine supplements. Some components of ephedrine can affect your body, but the most notable of the effects are probably due to ephedrine.

Various studies have shown that ephedrine increases the resting number of metabolism i.e (the number of calories the body utilizes in a resting state). This may be a result of an increase in the number of calories burned by the muscles. Ephedrine can as enhance the process of burning fat in the body as well.

It was found in research that the number of calories burned off in the space of 24 hours was higher by 3.6% when ephedrine was used by adults of sound health, in comparison to when they used a placebo.

Another researcher discovered that once people went on an extremely low-calorie diet, their rate of metabolism dropped. However, this became partly avoided by using ephedrine. Added to the short-time period adjustments in metabolism, a few researchers concluded that ephedrine can encourage weight and fat loss over a longer period. In five studies of ephedrine while being compared to a placebo, ephedrine brought about a weight reduction of three pounds (1.3kg) per month greater than a placebo, for as much as four months. However, there is a lack of long-term data that can support the benefits of ephedrine for the loss of weight.

Furthermore, a lot of studies on ephedrine test the weight-loss of caffeine and ephedrine, in place of ephedrine alone.

Does it work well or not so well with caffine?

Various studies testing the weight-loss impact of ephedrine have mixed the ingredient with caffeine. The mix of the two seems to have greater impacts on your body than taking either of them alone. For instance, caffeine with ephedrine boosts the rate of metabolism more than only ephedrine.

In a study of obese and healthy overweight adults, the mixture of 24mgb of Ephedra and 79mg of caffeine increased the metabolic rate by 8% in 2 hours, in comparison to placebo. Some studies have even indicated that ephedrine and caffeine alone have no impact on weight loss, but the mixture of both produces a loss of weight. Taking the combination of ephedra and caffeine three times daily for 12 weeks reduced body fat by 7.9% compared to just 1.9% with placebo.

In another 6-month study of 167 obese and overweight individuals, dietary supplements containing ephedrine and caffeine were compared to placebo in a weight loss program. The group receiving ephedrine lost 9.5 pounds (4.3 kg) of fat in comparison to the group taking placebo, which lost only 5.9 pounds (2.7 kg) of fat.

The group taking ephedrine also reduced LDL (bad) cholesterol and body weight more than the group taking placebo. Overall, the available evidence suggests that products containing ephedrine, especially when combined with caffeine, may increase weight and fat loss.

Conclusion

Ma Huang is a stimulant herb obtained from the roots of Ephedra sinica. Many people have found it beneficial for weight loss, and also treating nasal congestion, common cold, asthma, and some other conditions. However, these uses have no scientific backing. However, the herb is banned in the US as there have been reports of life-threatening conditions and even death.

CHINESE CULTURE AND CANNABIS, READ THIS…

WHY THE CANNABIS INDUSTRY NEEDS TO BE WARY OF CHINA!

Have you heard this one before, “it will be so much easier for the youth to get their hands on cannabis!” This is the argument that prohibitionists have touted for decades and according to them, the moment you legalize cannabis it will be available everywhere.

Kids will be able to walk into a dispensary and some overgrown hippie would easily sell them weed….right? Well, it turns out that a recent study in California found that 100% of Cannabis dispensaries that were tested were compliant in checking ID prior to sale.

This was reported on Marijuana Moment where they covered the study.

“It was somewhat surprising that there was 100 percent compliance with the ID policy to keep underage patrons from purchasing marijuana directly from licensed outlets,” the authors of the study, published this month in the Journal of Safety Research, wrote. “However, that was consistent with what was observed in two other states, Washington and Colorado.”

In other words, the cannabis industry has no real interest in selling cannabis illegally to the youth. Compliance is their friend and what this does in turn is actually make “getting cannabis” more difficult for the kids.

This doesn’t mean that kids can’t get their hands on cannabis, it only means that the legal industry is not contributing to their consumption.

“It appears that licensed recreational marijuana outlets in California are checking young patrons for identification of their age. Therefore, it is unlikely that youth are purchasing marijuana directly from these outlets,” the new study says. “It is more likely they are using other sources, such as asking an adult to purchase it for them, obtaining it from older friends or siblings, and using it at parties where the marijuana use might be shared.” – Marijuana Moment

This is virtually the same for alcohol, and is something that you cannot stop because there will always be older adults buying stuff for younger people. An older brother, uncle, or even a home grow from a teen that doesn’t get too much parental supervision can all be sources where the youth source their weed.

The Youth in General Consume Less

The strange thing that happened since legalization is that youth consumption rates stayed pretty much the same or reduced post legalization as reported in the Guardian.

Researchers from the Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis surveyed 216,852 teenagers from all 50 states and found that the number of adolescents with marijuana-related disorders dropped by 24% from 2002 to 2013. During that period, overall teen pot use also decreased by 10%, despite the fact that more than a dozen states legalized medical marijuana and decriminalized the drug during that time. – The Guardian, 2016

While it’s true that this article is five years old, the fact of the matter is that the findings remain consistent. While the Youth prefer cannabis and mushrooms over alcohol, fewer of them are using cannabis. In other words, it seems that cannabis legalization removed the “edge” from the use of cannabis.

When I was a teenager, cannabis was seen as a “rebellious act” by some…not by me, I just loved smoking pot! However, others would rebel by smoking weed.

These days, rebellion takes on different forms. I’m not going speculate what is the “flavor of the day” for youth rebellion…but what conclusions we can draw from all this noise is that “legalizing cannabis” doesn’t make it easier for kids to get their hands on weed.

In fact, no legal establishment will sell cannabis due to the fines and punishments associated with selling to a minor.

This will also not change in the coming years.

Legal makes it harder…and safer!  

Legal businesses will never sell to a minor. The weed sold in these places need to go through strict standards and regulatory checks, meaning that it’s also safer to consume than untested street weed (technically).

If this works with weed…why wouldn’t it work with other drugs too? Why is it that we live in a society that frowns upon the individual’s right to get blitzed? Why can’t I buy pharmaceutical grade LSD from a store if I’m over the age of 21?

Why am I allowed to smoke weed, drink alcohol and pop pills legally – but can’t eat some mushrooms?

If every dispensary could sell “drugs” in general, compliance would still remain 100% and if you’re worried about these 3rd-party Free agents giving kids drugs…increase the penalties for them. But we should never punish the whole of society for the potential bad actions of a few people.

I believe that if we legalize and regulate all drugs like Marijuana, we would not only have a safer society…but we would begin to see a dawn of a new age of enlightenment as millions of adults would have the legal right to experience a psychedelic experience – to heal, to shift their perspectives and to explore their own consciousness.

Legalization works! Let’s do it for all drugs!

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